COMMUNITY FORUM

Wall ovens next to refrigerator??

My husband and I are building a new home. Unfortunately the kitchen space is limited, and we are trying to design the most efficient use of space. My question is this...

There is just enough room on one wall next to the pantry to fit a side-by-side refrigerator, as well as the double wall ovens that I've always dreamed of. It's the only place in the kitchen that would allow for the double-ovens, and still allow for sufficient counter space.

While my husband feels that this can be accomplished easily, and is a perfect use of space, I am afraid that placing the ovens and refrigerator so close together might not be energy efficient. At this point, the space is just close enough to fit them both, but I'm afraid they'll just be too close to one another.

Please tell me, is this a common use of space? Is it possible to place the ovens so close to the refrigerator? Will the refrigerator have problems or a shorter life span being place next to the wall ovens? Is this truly an efficient use of our space?

It is definitely not the ideal. Normally a triangle setup is recommended with a fridge, cooking appliance and sink at each of a triangle's corners.

Whether a refrigerator will suffer negatively will depend on how much you use the oven(s) and actually how much and how often the fridge receives the oven's heat. Keep in mind that refrigerators 'suck in' surrounding room to use for heat removal as part of the refrigeration process. If it is sucking in very hot air heated by the nearby oven, it will increase the fridge's work load and also its energy consumption.

There is also the case of having a possibly very hot oven (see the link below) beside a fridge which is typically the most used appliance in the kitchen. While cooking, someone wants something out of the fridge and brushs up against the hot oven surface...

There may also be local building code restrictions. Check with a local building inspector.

** In our case (40" Kenmore gas) that the oven vent gets pretty darn hot; but I bet it's not over the limit. **

There is no temperature limit to a range's *vent* area. Oven air is usually vented directly through there so it will be almost exactly the same temperature as the oven interior air (325°F-400°F depending...).

The vent area *of the door* will usually produce cooler (than the oven) air as it is just circulated through the door halves to cool the outer door and does not actually come from the oven interior.

** It keeps them out from underfoot. **

Give then their own, smaller fridge (... in the garage or basement). ;)